Mr. Met
Mr. Met is the official mascot of Major League Baseball's New York Mets. He is a man with a large baseball for a head. He can be seen at Citi Field during Mets home games, has appeared in several commercials as part of ESPN's This is SportsCenter campaign, and has been elected into the Mascot Hall of Fame. He has own field which is called Mr. Met's Kiddie Field. Mr. Met's number is 00 (Double 0). The original Mr. Met is now located at the Mets Hall of Fame and Museum at Citi Field. The features it used to have were human hands and the head was floated and there was no number. The same features it had a Mets cap on top, baseball head, belt and the Mets uniform from today and the early 60's. He is the husband of Mrs. Met who is the female mascot of the team. History Mr. Met was first introduced on the cover of game programs, yearbooks, and on scorecards in 1963, when the Mets were still playing at the Polo Grounds in northern Manhattan. When the Mets moved to Shea Stadium in 1964, fans were introduced to a live costumed version. Mr. Met is believed to have been the first mascot in Major League Baseball to exist in human (as opposed to artistically rendered) form. He was also the first person on the Mets to be represented by a bobblehead doll. In the 1960s, Mr. Met occasionally appeared in print with a female companion, Lady Met (sometimes known as "Mrs. Met"), and less frequently with a group of three "little Mets" children; the smallest was a baby in Lady Met's arms. Mrs. Met was finally introduced in a live costumed form at Citi Field in 2013. In the mid-1970s, the Met franchise dissolved the Mr. Met mascot, and he remained absent for almost 20 years. Unfortunately, he was phased out prior to the upsurge in mascot popularity caused by The Famous Chicken and the Phillie Phanatic in the late '70s. In 1992, long time Met fan, Lois Kaufmann of Queens, New York, wrote a compelling appeal for his reinstatement and asking the Mets to resurrect the mascot. The team did not act quickly or grant Lois her request to be Mr. Met. However, in 1994, they did follow her advice and revived Mr. Met as part of a promotion with Nickelodeon. After a long absence, Mr. Met was quickly reembraced by New York Mets fans and has since remained a constant part of the franchise. Mr. Met is prominently featured in signage all over Citi Field. He was also heavily used in Shea Stadium signage. On April 14, 2002, the Mets held a birthday party for Mr. Met at Shea Stadium. It was attended by costumed mascots from all around Major League Baseball and by Sandy the Seagull, mascot of the Brooklyn Cyclones, a Mets farm team. In the 2003 season, first baseman Tony Clark was the first Met ever to wear #00, Mr. Met's number. In June of that season, he switched to #52 when Queens schoolchildren asked him what had happened to Mr. Met. On September 14, 2007, Mr. Met was elected into the Mascot Hall of Fame. Beginning on August 14, 2009, throughout their series against the San Francisco Giants, the Mets wore throwback jerseys featuring a Mr. Met patch on the right sleeve. He is also featured on the jackets on the left sleeve. Currently, Mr. Met can be seen at Citi Field during and after games. He is usually found near Mr. Met's Kiddie Field where fans can meet and pose for pictures with him. He can be rented for special events and private parties. Mr. Met is also featured on Mets Money, which are $1, $5 and $10 denomination gift certificates accepted at concession stands and souvenir shops at Citi Field. The design is somewhat reminiscent of standard U.S. currency, but instead features images of Mr. Met attired and posed similarly to the historical official (Washington, Lincoln or Hamilton) featured on the respective bill. The second version of the Mr. Met head is now on display at the New York Mets Hall of Fame and Museum at Citi Field. He Is "Baseball's Favorite Mascot". In 2013, the Mets introduced batting practice caps featuring Mr. Met on the front. In 2014, a Mr. Met sleeve patch is featured on the Mets' blue alternate home and road jerseys. Another Mr. Met patch was placed on the 2014 "Los Mets" uniform on the left sleeve. Mr. Met also appeared on Battle of the Broadcasters. Performers Mr. Met has been portrayed by many people over the years. Dan Reilly was the first person to wear the Mr. Met costume, starting in 1964. According to the March 20, 2006, issue of The New Yorker, Reilly is working on a book about his experiences with the team, to be called The Original Mr. Met Remembers. Mr. Met was portrayed from 1994 through 1997 by AJ Mass, currently a fantasy sports writer for ESPN and author of the book How Fantasy Sports Explains the World, published in August 2011. Matt Golden portrayed Mr. Met from 1999 to 2011. Category:Mets Category:Culture